jonathanm1978

Accurate review from my own ownership experience. I'm underwhelmed by the g3 after 3 weeks of ownership

http://m.blogs.computerworld.com/android/24197/lg-g3-best-android-phone

This post, without even going to the article - which I've not and likely won't do - looks like troll bait. Anyone underwhelmed by the g3 shouldn't really be writing reviews on android phones. There's absolutely nothing underwhelming about the phone. It may not be overwhelming, but it'll hold its own. And the update quote someone posted just shows it's bait. LG's history with the G2 is much better than most others far as speed and number of updates. Two flagship phones in under a year....well I'm not gonna get into that, but it just seems like someone is jealous of the success of the g3 and ability+ speed of the phone.

I came from the note 2 and was also waiting for the note 4. I'm not the biggest TW fan and I really didn't use the s pen much either. The screen size on the g3 is comparable to the notes so I don't miss the size... Nor the s pen or TouchWiz. I buy my devices on contact so it was hard for me to justify the hefty price tag the note 4 is sure to come with when you can get the g3 for a steal at $99 on upgrade. Another big deciding factor for me was the camera. The s5 pics I took with my sons phone look outstanding, but they also have some weird fake/shadowy look to them and the low light pics still suffer a bit. I figured the note 4 would probably hold the same camera or very similar, and I loved the more natural look to the g3 pics. The g3 screen is also outstanding, and I prefer the more vanilla ui over tw. I've not regretted leaving the note at all.

 

Sent from my LGLS990 using Tapatalk

 

 

I left the Galaxy S5 after only a month (3 weeks...something close to a month) because of two main things:

the camera app would take FOR---EV----ER to open. Nothing I did affected the 3+ second delay in opening the camera (from tapping to ready to shoot a pic)...and with a toddler, there are cute moments I want to capture and it was near impossible. The second thing was the battery. I couldn't deal with the extremely fast drain, usually by noon (after unplugging then sitting around the house until noon doing nothing but a little facebook and email), it would be down to <50%. That's just too much drain and I didn't know why.

My wife has the S5 also, and she loves it. Battery is great for her. Seems like when the screen is off, hers is barely even using the battery at all...and she hasn't complained to me (yet) about the camera app. but she doesn't take as many photos as I do.

 

All in all, the G3 was drastically better in both areas I listed. Battery is wonderful. I get 12+/- hours on battery, depending though on what I do and the signal where I am.

 

I was at a family reunion with my trusty g3 and the signal there was just pitiful. Barely 2-3 bars, and the 3G data on C-Spire SUCKS. Let me say that again...3G data on a C-spire tower in lower Mississippi (McComb, Tylertown, etc) REALLY SUCKS!!!!!

I never could get GPS or nothing to even pull up because hitting a C-spire tower meant dead 3G...it just wouldn't do data.

I couldn't load pages, couldn't sync...nothing. But jump from C-Spire to Sprint (which was B26 in that area and even some LTE that was great when it actually hit the sprint towers)...and immediately the GPS would start working...etc

Pain when you need to get directions, and GPS won't load, and you're already driving. I pulled over waiting I don't know how many times...and in Backwoods, Mississippi...it ain't cool to just pull over near someone's property...hah!!

 

 

There's my exp with the G3, from the S5. Other than the pathetic signal areas, the battery is wonderful. Even in the pathetic signal area, with it trying to use a dead data connection on C-Spire...the G3 still lasted me from 10am until 8:00pm...and several (50+ photos).

Normally I get 12 though.

Knock on is double tap to wake. Knock code is the 4 custom tap setting to enable instant unlock of device.

 

Sent from my LG-LS980

 

And here I was waking the phone, then doing the knock code that I customized. The minimum is 3 and maximum is....I know if you go past 4 taps it says you need to enter it at least 8 times...but you also set a back-up pin ...

 

 

I thought the phone had to be on the lock screen in order to use the custom knock code...but I tried using just the code instead of waking the phone first...thanks for unknowingly giving me that tip!!

Hah..I unplugged mine 2hr 3min ago from charge...and it's still showing 100% left. I'm loving it.

 

I mentioned the Georgia aquarium visit in previous posts here on the G3  thread...I took 167 photos on the visit to the aquarium with my phone....I still had 18% or so battery when we got in the van to leave.

My signal doesn't seem to fluctuate too bad with my Otterbox Defender on it. I got the case when I got the phone.

Even when I had that on my S3, I only used it as a novelty and only because I knew it existed because of technical articles I read. In a common application, your average person probably wouldn't use that very often, if at all. I don't use headsets and such so it's even more uncommon for me to need it. I haven't really missed it since moving from the s3.

Coming from the S5, and seeing the lag that I had with it...the G3 is like night and day for me. Maybe it was just me, but the S5 battery life SUCKED...and I mean, unplugged normally at 7:00am or so, and by noon I would be down in the 40% +/- range.

 

Here's something that impressed me...yesterday (7-19-2014) at the Georgia aquarium...I took 167 photos from the time we got on the road until we got back home.  My phone was off charge the entire time, so running on battery for all 167 photos. When I got back in the van to leave the aquarium, my battery was at 17%. Granted, that low, but considering what I did, and all the pics I took, that's AMAZING. That's focusing and shooting 167 pics on battery. From 10:30am until 4:30pm snapping pics...

 

(on a related side-note, I like that Google+ made a "story" from my pics. I took a pic or two of the kids in the vehicle at a stoplight in Atlanta...and took a pic of the Georgia dome...and Google+ took the photos, and made a "story" from it called "Saturday in Atlanta"...it was a chronological mix according to time and GPS location data...very neat stuff)

I'm thinking the B41 site you were connected to hasn't had its backhaul upgraded yet. Still, that is more than enough to do most anything on a Smartphone. Plenty of upstream data for an HD quality Video Hangout, Skype, whatever.

Definitely enough to cover what I do with a phone, I just never had any internet access, on anything....computer, phone, etc, over 20mbps down and 15 up. I don't really have any reason for wanting it so fast, except to see the result of the speed test one time.

On 7/18/2014 at 6:17 PM, nexgencpu said:

Do you get an LTE signal there?

Nope.

 

I thought band 41 would be blazing fast, but turns out it was just average...

This was in Atlanta, I also hit 26 much of the time i was at the aquarium.

 

 

 

Edit - I did manage to lose my HD voice cherry while in the ATL though.

Mine does nothing when I send text or pics. It sends through Wi-Fi as it should. Radio shows -120 ev-do rev.a Verizon. But that's SCP, there are no bars, and none show when texts or MMS sends

Mine work fine, both. Try ##SCRTN#? (##72786#)

I noticed yesterday on my G3 that the ICCID was listed as being "unknown" instead of having a number present.

I did a reboot shortly after and happened to think about checking it, and the 89011************ number was back as it should be...

mad me wonder if the card became unseated for a second....

Either that, or try hitting ##scrtn# on dialer screen.

##72786#

Anyone feel like the G3 is too big? Personally from what I have seen of the phone, I love the specs and the UI is very much improved. Just don't know if I could deal with the size.

I manage to use the g3 comfortably with one hand. To me, it's just the right fit for my hands.

Here's some photos -- or link to dropbox so the thread doesn't get filled up with images -- of what I've done with the G3 Camera...

 

The photos are taken with default settings (W10M 4160x2340 versus 13M 4160x3120), mode "Auto", flash "Auto".  I'm sure if I tinkered with it, they could be better, but I think the hummingbird and detail on the moth are both fantastic. To capture a hummingbird in flight and still focus the head and body is quite amazing shutter speed...usually, if the wings are blurred, the parts of the body close to it will be also as the shutter can't focus the image...not without some amazingly fast speed settings on the shutter and aperture....

The moth was on my porch where a light stays on all the time..24/7. It's the actual size of a baseball or slightly bigger..

The hummingbird was just outside my bedroom window. The zoom isn't that far in on either of the pics, as I was pretty close to the subject.

 

(the hummingbird was captured in the last 2 shots because I held the "button" down...and it just started snapping. Three pics in a row, really fast. I didn't focus the last two photos of the bird in, as it just snapped them too quickly)

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/70evty52e7jzuje/AADCYUHtD9ihQaxWDqEfuGp7a

Unlike the G2, the G3 doesn't have prongs on the case back for GPS antenna. This is likely due to the wireless charging and being able to change backs at will...so the GPS antenna was moved. I have used the GPS, and actually it seems to lock on much quicker than my S5 did, but i only used the S5 a handful of times for GPS navigation.

 

I'll be using the LG G3 navigation/GPS to take us to Atlanta aquarium on Saturday. But I've used it already and it's pretty darn accurate.

 

I'm trying to figure out the ability of the G3 and just confusing myself...but maybe someone can just chime in with a yes if I'm correct on this...the G3 can do data on 800, 1900 (obviously) and 2600..and voice on 800 and 1900...?? Am I correct??

I was trying to look at Atlanta maps and get a feel for what I'll be able to use while there...I-20 all the way.

I've enabled wifi calling at home depot up the road while shopping -- which is AT&T -- just to try it...as far as using "trusted" networks...I don't think that matters. Using Wifi calling on a public wifi wouldn't be the same as sending CC info over a public wifi...I don't even know if someone could snoop on a public wifi and somehow gather anything from the packets used by wifi calling.  Could someone even get the originating telephone number placing calls on a network? Either way, I don't think it's that much of an issue. I'll likely use it when I go to motels if my cell signal isn't great inside, I just don't see where wifi calling is that much of a security thing...as long as the GPS locates the right address.

 

There's no difference in this, and taking a magic jack with you on vacation and using it on the wifi at a motel...it's the same principal. (or taking a vonage box with you..long as you register the 911 address).

I'm not sure what problems you've met in the past, but if you can be found with GPS, then Wi-Fi calling can be setup without a problem. I have had to register my address and wait two weeks back when Vonage wasn't that popular, but i live in the sticks and even I have Wi-Fi calling setup in just a few seconds. It locates me, fills the nearest address in, and that's it......click save and done.

Did you happen to read AJ's post above?

I was just trying to understand the point in your post.

 

 

S4GRU is not a Sprint recruitment nor retention site. It is an education site. If you wish to educate yourself, become an S4GRU sponsor -- to help the non profit site defray its significant costs -- and learn where the Sprint sites are in your area(s) of interest and which sites have been Network Vision upgraded.

 

AJ

Have you done ##scrtn#?

90mbps or 90kbps?

 

 

Ooopsy...I meant 90kbps...deffo not 90mbps.

I'm hoping that my experience with Wifi calling improves, as AT&T will be out tomorrow to investigate my DSL line. I hope they find a splice or something in the line and replace the entire run between me and the pole, I think the trouble with my extreme data use lies in that, but I've noticed that quality of wifi calling is sometimes great...but sometimes it is lacking.

 

If they would install an IP DSLAM instead of ATM, I would see a world of change..but I don't know if that will happen ...ever.

 

I've dropped back to my Airave until I see what happens tomorrow. I wish all my phones in my house were wifi calling, but I have an HTC One ...the last 1 of the 4 at my house at aren't capable. My LG G3 has it, SGS5 that my wife has, SGS5 my daughter has.  So I'm hanging onto the Airave for the HTC One, the rest "could" technically use wifi calling. I am curious how wifi calling on the same network holds up with more than one phone using it at the same time...

I'd also like to see if there are some bandwidth requirements for wifi calling, because if it does handle HD voice then it would be higher than, say, Vonage VOIP..which doesn't require but about 90mbps upload speeds to keep quality decent.

Don't walk out of range on a call...trust me, it's very frustrating. I've done it and it takes a few for things to catch up once you get back in range, sorta like lag

If you look closely at the flap on the otter box, when holding it open, you can see it offers no resistance to the cord as it's being plugged in. I've checked because I didn't want my cord to become so loose that it would not hold the cord tightly.

I noticed it doesn't just fall into place when plugging in like others do, I chalked it up to the otter case. Actually I'm kinda glad it's hard to plug in, I would've enjoyed seeing a plug type like the gs5 has though.